Trustmark National Bank Trust Department Decreases Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Trustmark National Bank Trust Department cut its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 19.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 14,722 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,595 shares during the period. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,465,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, Director Inge G. Thulin bought 2,833 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $88.25 per share, with a total value of $250,012.25. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $258,837.25. This represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total transaction of $209,562.36. Following the sale, the insider now owns 7,085 shares in the company, valued at $628,864.60. This represents a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $79.14 on Monday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $75.96 and a 12-month high of $134.63. The stock has a market cap of $199.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.76, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $88.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $97.28.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.13). Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The firm had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.03 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its board has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.09%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.14%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Leerink Partners dropped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. TD Cowen cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $115.50.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc is a health care company, which engages in the provision of health solutions through its prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, animal health, and consumer care products. It operates through the following segments: Pharmaceutical, Animal Health, and Other. The Pharmaceutical segment includes human health pharmaceutical and vaccine products.